AFCON 2025: Why we lost to Nigeria – Tunisia coach Trabelsi

Tunisia head coach Sami Trabelsi says his side ‘lost too many duels' and failed to impose themselves early as Nigeria punished defensive lapses to secure a thrilling 3-2 victory at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, Soccernet.ng reports.

Nigeria’s win in Fez on Saturday night booked them a place in the Round of 16 but the contest took a dramatic turn after the Super Eagles surrendered a three-goal lead late on.

Ahead of the encounter, Tunisia arrived with confidence and momentum.

They had conceded no goal across their World Cup qualifying campaign and opened their AFCON campaign with a convincing 3-1 win over Uganda. Nigeria, by contrast, edged past another East African foe Tanzania 2-1.

Yet those pre-match narratives were overturned in a dominant Nigerian display that saw Eric Chelle’s side exploit Tunisia’s defensive structure with pace, power and precision before surviving a tense late comeback.

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Nigeria dominance, Tunisia response

Nigeria struck just before half-time when Ademola Lookman delivered a pinpoint cross from the left for Victor Osimhen, who rose powerfully to head home. It was a goal that reflected Tunisia’s struggles in defensive duels, particularly against aerial threats.

Four minutes after the restart, captain Wilfred Ndidi doubled the lead, again benefiting from Lookman’s quality delivery from a corner. The Super Eagles appeared in full control, and when Lookman rifled home Nigeria’s third in the 66th minute after a clever Osimhen cut-back, the contest looked settled.

Tunisia, however, refused to surrender. Montassar Talbi headed home from a Hannibal Mejbri free-kick in the 75th minute, igniting belief. Ten minutes later, VAR intervened after Bright Osayi-Samuel was adjudged to have handled the ball, allowing Ali Abdi to smash home a penalty and set up a nervy finale.

Despite sustained pressure, Tunisia fell just short, with Ferjani Sassi’s stoppage-time header drifting narrowly wide.

After the match, Trabelsi admitted frustration but pointed to encouraging signs.

“Of course, there is a sense of bitterness after the match and this defeat,” Trabelsi told CAFonline.

“We felt we could have come back, especially during the final 30 minutes. The players performed at a very high level in that period; we created many chances, scored two goals and could have scored more.

“The defeat hurts, but there is also a positive aspect: it shows that we can compete with any opponent when we impose our style of play and our ball possession.

“We respected them, yes, while trying to remain balanced. We know that Nigeria have very fast and powerful players, so we tried to reduce the spaces. In the first half, we had a few chances that we should have taken. The goals we conceded came from crosses; it was not a matter of too much respect, but rather that we lost too many defensive and attacking duels. Once we started winning our attacking duels, we were much better and put the opponent under pressure.

“I repeat, we did not start the match well because we lost too many duels. However, over the final 35 minutes, we were dominant and the final result could have been very different.

“It is a matter of judgement. When we needed even more attacking penetration, we introduced Ismail Gharbi, but the performance of those already on the pitch was not poor. The next match will be decisive.”

Nigeria now sit top of Group C with six points and will face Uganda next, while Tunisia travel to Rabat to meet Tanzania knowing their tournament hangs in the balance.